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April 30, 2063 What a difference a month makes, right? Last year, the Bikini Krill scored 693 runs, considerably below the Frick League average. This season, the Klub has already registered 143 runs, a number that ties for second best behind Hawaii in the Frick League. You might suggest that some of this would be due to basic rebound toward mean, as some suggested the Krill should have been better than they were, but that would not be correct. Several of the team's stalwart vets are having, shall we say, uncomfortable starts. Napoleon Mellot, for exhibit A (2 HR, .215/.278/.354). Mike McClure (1 HR, .182/.270/.212) for exhibit B. Fernando Bushey has now been relegated to the hinterlands of AAA. Catcher Pedro Jimenez is looking a lot like his rookie tilt.
No. The difference is in the new faces--guys brought in with free agency signings, minor league development, and last-season's midyear deals.
They look like this:
| Name | G | AB | HR | AVG | OPS | WAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amin Abdul-Halim CF | 25 | 101 | 5 | 0.297 | 0.855 | 1 |
| Julio Lopez RF | 24 | 78 | 1 | 0.333 | 0.914 | 0.9 |
| Agatone Louganis 2B | 22 | 63 | 2 | 0.302 | 0.833 | 0.7 |
| Abhijana Swamy LF | 26 | 108 | 3 | 0.315 | 0.886 | 0.6 |
| Juan Ramos 1B/RF | 25 | 101 | 5 | 0.248 | 0.765 | 0.2 |
"We wouldn't be anywhere without the kids," said the BBA's first clone/female manager Kate Fiscus. "We're glad we have them."
Swamy and Ramos have been anticipated arrivals for some time now, and are no surprise to dedicated fans, and Lopez has continued the steady play he brought from the deal the Klub made with Long Beach last year. Swamy's bat has been multi-capable as promised, and Ramos's power has been a complete blessing.
The two big surprises to date, however, stand as Abdul-Halim in center field and Louganis at second base. Both have brought respectable gloves to the field while fueling the offense with a steady does of average and OPS. In particular, ex-GBC star Abdul-Halim's five homers, while not completely uncharacteristic, were not really expected. "I got 22 a couple years back," the switch-hitting Iraqi said. "So I can manage in the right moments."
Will the production keep going?
One can hope it will, anyway.
Or at least one can hope that as these five cool down, guys like Mellott, McClure, Keith Williams, Al Schumann, and Manuel Martinez can pick up their games--and one can hope that fresh arrival of Felix Moreno can add even more.
"Sky's the limit," Fiscus said. "We think we can win the division."
